Freelancing for beginners: the pros and cons of working from home

The word «freelancing» is quite firmly established in our lives. For many, it is associated with a person who, with a laptop in his hands, lies on a hammock under a palm tree somewhere in Thailand, for someone – with freedom, and someone – with idleness.

Actually, this is the same serious job, but it has a slightly different format: freelancer, unlike a full-time employee, does not sit in the office and does not work 8 hours from Monday to Friday. He can work wherever there is Internet, independently distributes his working time and looks for himself one-time or permanent orders.

But many workers, tired of office life, doubt to leave in free swimming. To dispel all doubts, the editors of the Internet publication estet-portal.com collected for beginners all the pros and cons of working at home.

1. Freelance cons: lack of confidence in the future
2. Pros of freelancing: "free swimming" and other "goodies"

Cons of freelancing: lack of confidence in the future

Let's start from the other side of the coin.

The disadvantages of free work are as follows:

1. The need to be disciplined and self-organized. For beginners, working from home can seem like a real "paradise". But in fact, not everything is as simple as it seems at first glance.

If a full-time employee must have two habits: get up in the morning and come to work, then a freelancer must be as self-disciplined, self-organized, executive as possible.

He bears much more responsibility than a full-time employee. He must always keep himself in good shape, not be distracted by matters not related to work, effectively plan his working time and tasks for the day, week and month, and also be himself accountant.

And it must also be constantly evolving, because if it stays in place, customers will leave, and new ones will not come. And, accordingly, there will be no earnings.

2. The need to create your own client base. The fate of a freelancer is such that he himself has to look for orders for himself. And this is a huge waste of time, effort, and sometimes nerves. For beginners, this may seem doubly difficult.

After all, the competition on freelance exchanges is huge. And if there is no experience in the area where he wants to go to work, and there is also no portfolio, clients can simply opt for more “advanced” ones. specialists. Of course, it is more reliable to look for clients directly by offering your services to various companies. But for this you need to be able to sell yourself and communicate with customers.

The main disadvantage of "free floating" – freelancers sometimes become so deeply immersed in their tasks that they blur the line between work and personal life. And this is fraught with psychological problems, the loss of friends and loved ones.

3. Unstable earnings. A freelancer can have a “thick” month in one month, and a “dense” month in the second – "empty". Such fluctuations in wages are associated with many reasons: the customer left, the client wrote a negative review, as a result of which other customers began to contact less, and so on. Therefore, for beginners who want to have a stable income, you will have to work hard to have something in your wallet.

4. Lack of change of scenery. Being constantly at home at the computer, a person does not see the changing picture before his eyes. They begin to "put pressure" on him; walls, furniture and workplace.

5. No social package. In most cases, freelancers are not officially registered anywhere. This means that there is no paid sick leave and vacation. Also, taxes are not deducted, as a result of which you can be left without a pension.

6. Loss of contact with people. Working freelance, workers often complain about lack of communication. They have no one to consult and learn from. They themselves must seek answers to their questions, as well as engage in self-education.

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Instagram. Freelance pros: "free swimming" and other "goodies"

As for the benefits of freelancing, there are plenty of them:

1.

Huge earnings.

Despite the fact that the level of income of a freelancer is unstable, this worker can earn more than an office employee. Everything depends on him: the more orders, the more correctly the schedule and efforts are distributed, the more earnings. 2.

Enjoying work.

If the office sometimes gives uninteresting tasks that the employee is obliged to complete, then freelancing he can choose interesting projects for himself and refuse uninteresting ones. And if the work is a pleasure, then high results and increased personal commitment are guaranteed. 3.

There is no reference to the workplace and time.

The freelancer can choose where to work: at home, in a coworking center, in a cafe or while traveling. He can also work and take a day off whenever he likes. As a result of research, it turned out that the huge advantage of freelancing for freelancers – this is a flexible schedule and the ability to work from anywhere in the world.

4.

Save time and money.

Working from home, you don't have to take the subway or other public transport to get to work. Also, do not spend money on work lunches and office outfits. You can even work in pajamas. 5.

The opportunity to arrange your workplace as comfortably as possible.

You choose which computer desk to sit at, which curtains to hang and how to equip your work area. If you are tired of office work and want to be free-floating, know that

freelancing

– This is a job in which you are your own boss. Here you need to rely only on your own strength. Therefore, if you have little work experience, no negotiating skills, and you do not know how to sell yourself, but want to learn something else and gain experience, then freelancing – this is not for you. And if you are an experienced and highly qualified specialist, know how to present yourself beautifully, communicate well with various people, want to work for yourself, then you should still try this lifestyle.

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